A routine track inspection late last week discovered a landslide on the Big South Fork Scenic Railway’s old Kentucky & Tennessee mainline at Milepost 4.7, just north of the junction with the spur that leads into the Blue Heron Mining Community at MP 4.9, which is the line’s primary destination for their excursions. A section of track along the Roaring Paunch Creek dropped a foot in elevation and is being pushed towards the creek, near where the creek meets the Big South Fork River.
With normal operations set to start on April 1, this has started a scramble at the railroad to setup other trips to help continue to bring in revenue, and to find the resources to get the line back into service as quickly as possible. The railroad is a major tourist draw for the small Southern Kentucky community, so this has the potential to have a major impact on the local economy as well.
The railroad still plans to start normal operations on April 1, but with shorter trips at reduced fares.
The last time I was there, the mainline was intact as far as the bridge across the south fork of the Cumberland River at Yammacraw, but was out of service below Blue Heron because of washouts under the track
I was wondering the same thing. I to the best of my knowledge, I did not think it was operational. I would love to see what was up there at any rate.
Is the mainline still in place beyond the spur to Blue Heron?